A Haunted Trainer
Rating: T
Pairing: None
Ages: Danny is 5 and then 10
Summary: A trainer gifted with the ability to talk to the dead and to any ghost type that'll lend an ear and a veteran trainer that has too much time on his hands. What kind of trouble could they possibly get into?
An elderly man hummed softly to himself as he walked through the top floor of the tower. The top floor was hardly visited by people. After a while, most had wanted the older graves to be moved higher up so that they wouldn't have to climb the stairs every time to visit their loved ones' resting place. So the graves at the top were old enough graves that no one visited them anymore, no one except Mr. Fuji.
"Rest in peace dear souls and may your troubles not cause you to linger…" Mr. Fuji placed a flower on each grave, mumbling prayers as he went. He finally turned to walk to the large shrine that depicted Arceus' golden crest, only to stop dead in his tracks upon noticing a small child sleeping against it. He had white hair, tan skin, and couldn't be more than five; he wore a black t-shirt and jeans with tiny white tennis shoes on his feet. "Dear Mew…" Mr. Fuji kneeled and checked carefully for a pulse. It was slight, but there. He went to pick up the boy and saw he was awake and staring at him.
"Hi."
"Hello there. Are you lost?"
The boy blinked and scrunched his brows in great thought. "I… I don't know. I don't think so."
"What's your name, child?"
The boy perked up and beamed at the elder man, apparently pleased that he knew the answer to this question. "Danny! My name is definitely Danny."
And with that introduction, Mr. Fuji just knew he shouldn't have come into tower that morning, but he also knew he couldn't stop smiling. The boy was clutching his hand like he had already claimed him as a father. The elder didn't notice when, the shrine behind him, emitted a gold glow and a purple and bluish figure blurred in and out of focus until it was no longer there.
zz
5 years later…
"Hl ziv blf gsv tslhg lu zmlgsvi klpvnlm li dviv blf xivzgvw zh z tslhg?" (So are you the ghost of another pokemon or were you created as a ghost?)
"R dzh xivzgvw. Nb uzgsvi dzh z Izgrxzgv zmw nb nln dzh xivzgvw orpv nv." (I was created. My father was a Raticate and my mom was created like me.)
"Sld wlvh gszg dlip?" (How does that work?)
"Dvoo dsvm gdl tslhgh olev vzxs lgsvi z dslov olg, gsvb xlnv gltvgsvi zmw luuvi z yrg lu gsvnhvoevh-" (Well when two ghosts love each other a whole lot, they come together and offer a bit of themselves-)
Danny blinked and then laughed out loud. "Really the birds and the bees for ghosts?"
"Svb! Rg'h gsv gifgs, blf orggov gdrg." (Hey! It's the truth, you little twit.) The ghost pokemon, known as Gastly bounced in the air as though nodding sagely.
"Maybe… Hey do you wanna go visit Pidgey and Lapras?" Danny asked, before jumping off the the gravestone as though he already knew Gastly would say yes.
"Svb R wrwm'g gvoo blf nb wvxrhrlm bvg! Ls blf orggov…" (Hey I didn't tell you my decision yet! Oh you little…) Gastly sighed and then flew after the young boy.
zz
"Croo croo clk." The bird cocked it's head to look at Danny, as it rested on the pier's post.
"Hey Gastly, what did Pidgey say?"
"Sv dzmgvw gl pmld dsvm blf dlfow tl lm z qlfimvb." (He wanted to know when you would go on a journey.) Gastly informed.
Danny smiled and petted Pidgey's feathers. The brown and tan creature crooned in a way that didn't mean speech. "I don't know. Mr. Fuji sent a request to the professor… Once I get my license in the mail and some pokeballs, I'm good to go." Danny grunted and then laughed when a large blue head winded him via a simple nudge. "Someone's jealous, ha!" Danny used his other hand to pet Lapras's snout. He was at the perfect level to get petted by Danny since the piers south of Lavender were just about as high off the surface of the sea as the pokemon's height.
"Hl, droo blf yv orhgrmt Krwtvb li Ozkizh zh blfi hgzigvi?" (So, will you be listing Pidgey or Lapras as your starter?) Gastly asked idly, being sure to look away with a flourish.
"Well I was hoping it could be you, Gastly… or will your parents let you come?" Danny asked.
"Dvoo gsvb'iv mvielfh zylfg rg, yfg hrmxv blf'iv yvttrmt nv gl xlnv R xzm nzpv zm vcxvkgrlm…" (Well they're nervous about it, but since you're begging me to come, I can make an exception…) Gastly perked up and laughed raucously, before resting near Danny's right shoulder.
"I wasn't exactly… never mind. I'm happy you'll come, Gastly." Danny grinned before a peck on the head from Pidgey got his attention. "Ouch! Hey, what was-"
"Rg'h ulfi. Low nzm Ufqr droo hgzig gl dliib." (It's four. Old man Fuji will start to worry.) Gastly translated.
"Oh, thanks Pidgey. See you guys tomorrow!" Danny petted both pokemon one more time before turning and running back towards town. Gastly flew after him and Danny threw a wave over his shoulder.
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Danny had never seen a gun before. Mr. Fuji of course had told him about them and explained how the weapon worked, but he'd never actually seen one up close and he'd definitely never seen one pointed right between his eyes.
"Please! Please don't hurt him! He was just worried about me! He's just a boy!"
Danny's eyes flicked over to the other side of the room to see his father-figure tied up and being guarded by two other men from the notorious Team Rocket.
"Just a boy, huh?"
Danny was still looking at Mr. Fuji when the gun slammed into the side of his head. He was flung to the ground by the force and staryu danced in his vision.
"Please just let him go!"
"I'm sorry… wait, no I'm not. HA!"
"We'll let you all go once we're done here. So shut up and behave."
Danny felt rough rope pull his wrists together behind his back through his daze. He was lifted bodily and then dropped none too gently near Fuji.
"Oh Danny. Danny are you okay, son?"
Danny blinked still hazy eyes at the man. "Yeah… S'hurts…"
"I know my boy. I know."
"Quiet!"
Fuji immediately stilled. A new grunt walked up the steps from the floor below and saluted.
"Status Report?"
"We've been able to capture several ghost type pokemon as instructed."
Danny felt awareness return to him almost immediately. It was illegal to capture ghost pokemon directly within the tower. Outside and around the building was fine, but inside was the equivalent of baiting game. Ghosts were drawn to places like this, it wasn't sportsmanly to try and capture them here, plus Gastly and his family were somewhere inside. He struggled to sit up and shouted before he could actually think about what he was doing. "You can't do that! Some of these pokemon are trying to find rest and peace! This is a burial ground for Arceus-sa-"
CRACK!
He couldn't stop the scream that tore from his mouth at the pain coming from his arm. The grunt holding the gun had struck him as hard as possible in the shoulder and now it was surely dislocated.
"Arceus no!"
Danny barely heard a click through his heavy and pained breathing.
"If you even make one more peep, I'm going to put a bullet through your skull. You got that?" Danny didn't reply quick enough, even with the barrel touching his temple, so the Rocket grabbed his shoulder and squeezed. Another cry of pain was ripped from his lungs and his throat ached from its overuse. "I said… You got that?"
Danny coughed. "Yeah…" he whispered, focused on trying to make sure no tears fell from his eyes.
The grunt shoved him away, making Danny bite his lip to avoid a yelp of agony again.
"Good."
"Charizard, Fire blast."
"Hit the deck!"
It was then that Danny felt intense heat flood the room and the sounds of battle started up. Shouting and commands were being barked out and footsteps echoed, indicating a frenzy. Danny lifted his eyes and saw something amazing.
A boy, maybe eight years Danny's senior, was commanding a Charizard and a Pikachu to lay waste to the Grunts' pokemon. In a matter of minutes and in a rush of fire, electricity and body checks, the evil men's Raticates, Koffings and Zubat were down and out.
Then the grunt with the gun pointed his weapon at the stranger.
"Watch out!" Danny screamed instinctually. It seemed to be unnecessary though as the trainer's Charizard simply stood in front of his trainer and used Steel wing to deflect every bullet. When the man's magazine ran out, the fire type lunged and pinned the now whimpering man to the floor. Charizard snapped his jaws a centimeter from the man's face.
"Enough, Char."
Even that command didn't stop the pokemon from growling evilly at his prey. The trainer ran over as the sounds of footsteps echoed in the stairwell. "The police are finally here." The trainer murmured in what seemed to be irritation. They could hear shouting and no doubt the grunts that had tried to flee were being apprehended or pursued by officers.
"Red… is that you?" Fuji asked as the rope around his arms fell away.
"Yeah it's me, old man. You still getting into trouble?"
"I guess so." Fuji then untied Danny and with Red's help, pulled the boy unto wobbly feet. "Well we need to pop your shoulder back in place and get some salve for your other ails. You alright Danny?"
Danny nodded. "What about Gastly and the pokemon?"
Red looked at him closely as Fuji spoke, "I can only hope they didn't make off with many…"
Danny grit his teeth and pushed away from the two older males. "Gastly! Gastly are you there!?"
"Daniel, please. I know you're worried, but we need to make sure you're okay first," Fuji spoke up and made it to Danny's side. Red stopped on the other.
"The old man's right. You can't help anyone busted up like that."
Danny locked eyes with Red before he let out a sigh. "Fine."
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Danny stared out the window of the room he was in. It was a bed in the care center. Though Mr. Fuji and his assistants cared for many abandoned and orphaned pokemon, they also had some rooms for homeless travelers that were passing through.
His shoulder still ached and his head felt like someone had hit it with a bag of geodudes.
"Wzmmb?" (Danny?)
Danny froze. "Tzhgob?" (Gastly?) He sat bolt upright, looking for his friend, only to wince in pain. He saw Gastly float closer.
"Blf lpzb? Dszg szkkvmvw?" (You okay? What happened?) Gastly asked, landing in Danny's lap.
"Qfhg hlnv lu gsv tifmgh ilftsrmt nv fk. R'oo yv urmv gslfts. Dszg szkkvmvw gl blf zmw blfi uznrob!? R dzh hl dliirvw." (Just some of the grunts roughing me up. I'll be fine though. What happened to you and your family!? I was so worried.)
Gastly looked down and closed his eyes. "Gsvb gllp nln zmw wzw. R xlfowm'g hglk gsvn zmw ru gslhv klorxvnvm szwm'g xlnv dsvm gsvb wrw, R dlfowm'g szev vhxzkvw vrgsvi." (They took mom and dad. I couldn't stop them and if those policemen hadn't come when they did, I wouldn't have escaped either.) Small pin-pricks of light formed near the corners of Gastly's eyes and Danny realized his friend was crying.
"Gastly… I'm so sorry." He embraced his friend and they both cried together in silence.
zz
"Gsrh rh z yzw rwvz…" (This is a bad idea…)
"It'll be fine. I mean I was going on a journey anyways, right? I have my license now and I got everything packed. We just need to visit the pier and we can hit the road."
"What's with all the secrecy, hm?"
Danny shrieked and jumped a foot in the air before whipping around to come face to face with Red.
"Wha-what are you still doing here? It's been five days since the incident and it's like four o'clock in the morning."
"I wanted to make sure you and the old man were okay first."
"Oh…"
"Any particular reason you're sneaking off?"
"Me? Sneaking off? I mean whatever are you talking about?"
"Blf zivm'g xlmermxrmt zg zoo…" (You aren't convincing at all…)
"Be quiet, you ball of pompous pink gas!"
"Svb! R'n wvurmrgvob kfikov! Blf hzrw gszg qfhg gl tvg nv nzw, wrwm'g blf!?" (Hey! I'm definitely purple! You said that just to get me mad, didn't you!?)
"You can understand him?"
Danny swallowed, remembering his audience of one. "Oh uh, kinda? Fuji says I'm in tune with ghosts or something…"
Red didn't comment at first. "So, why the secrecy?"
"Uh… Fuji's clingy?"
Red actually afforded a smirk that time. "You aren't wrong… but seriously…"
"Gastly parents got taken and I'm worried Fuji won't let me go if he thinks I want to get Gastly's parents back. We had a big argument about it and I accidentally let it slip that I was wanting to help Gastly and then he forbade me from going on my journey any more… So I'm sneaking out."
Red eyed him for a moment and then let out a sigh. "And here I was thinking I could come out of hiding and not drag more attention to myself again… Sucks to be me I guess." He flipped out some kind of cellular device and clicked a few buttons. Once he had re-pocketed the device he looked into Danny's eyes. "Alright, you just won the flipping lottery, kid."
"Huh?"
"You're coming with me. I'll help you out and I'll even tell you some of my secrets…" Red expressed, waiting for the freak out.
"Thanks… I guess?"
"What, you too good for help?"
Danny blinked. "No of course not."
"Do you know who I am?"
"Uh… a friend of Mr. Fuji?"
Red stared at the boy for a moment before slowly placing a hand over his face. Several moments later he drug it down and sighed. "You've apparently been living under a rock, but that's better for me, less fan-boying or some crap."
Danny twisted his mouth a bit. "Should I know you?"
"Yeah sorta, but it's not important. More importantly, I'm going to help you get your friend's family back." Red grumbled as he turned to walk towards the pier. "Somehow those rats crawled up out of the gutter…"
"Wait! I need to get some of my friends first." Danny expressed, trotting after Red.
"I know. That's why I'm heading to the pier. I overheard your talk."
"Oh."
The two walked in silence towards the sounds of the sea. Then Red spoke. "Did you know you're eyes sometimes glow green in the dark?"
"Wha-really?"
Red hummed. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure why ever that is will show itself in time."
"Oh, okay."
Red watched the massive smile blossom across Danny's face when the sounds of a Lapras and Pidgey's calls came from nearby. The boy ran ahead.
What the hell was he thinking? He hardly knew how to take care of himself, if staying on a mountain for multiple years meant anything at all. How would he be friendly and helpful to some kid he'd randomly met.
"I sure am a glutton for punishment…" The vet murmured to himself.
So Danny does have his powers in this story, he just doesn't remember how to use them yet. That and his core is kinda dormant for unexplained reasons. He can speak to ghost pokemon though without trouble, other types of pokemon, not so much.
Yeah and I also kinda made up the thing about it being illegal to capture ghost pokemon inside the tower. Obviously you can capture pokemon in Pokemon Tower without issue, but it kinda made me wonder why that was okay. I mean some of those pokemon have to be regretful spirits of other pokemon trying to get a chance at new life. I guess then that would be okay, but still. Maybe capturing them around the building would seem more sportsmanly.
